Don't Lose It, Diffuse It!

Sometimes the flash can be just a bit over the top, especially when you want to get real close. Here is a very easy, quick way to fix that!

I was planning to document the making of a dish in my kitchen, and wanted to use the close-up lens on my Diana. Flash was of course also one of the ingredients… But when coming so close to your objects, the flash can sometimes can overdo it, leading to overexposed photos, or parts of them. So I need a diffuser, I though. Not a problem! I will make a diffusing filter for the flash!

What you need:

Diffusing paper, can also be tracing paper, wax paper, or even regular paper

Scissors

A flash – this is written for Colorsplash, but can be just as easily adapted for a Diana flash

One of the color gels you got with your flash (optional)

Take one of your color gels and hold them together with the diffusing paper.

With the scissors, cut around the gel, be careful not to cut the gel itself. It is better to cut the paper a bit bigger than the gel and to correct it later if needed. If you do not have a gel, you can just try and create the form you need with the trusty trial & error method…

that’s it! You now have a diffuser filter!

I was very pleased with the results, getting a soft lighting with almost no “hotspot”. With paper the diffusing effect is very good because of the grainy nature of it, causing the light to “break” and bounce in many directions.

This filter is staying in my Colorsplash, and when my new Diana flash will arrive, I will definitely make one for it as well.

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